Successful at 60 and Beyond

While many people view their 60th birthday as the time to begin wrapping up corporate careers and contemplating retirement, John and Susan Schulte did just the opposite and started their own business.

The Salem Business Journal reported the Schultes worked in a variety of industries over the course of their careers but had always dreamed of opening a business together later in life.  John’s career with Moore Corporation took the pair around the world – from Chicago to Brussels to London – exposing them to a multitude of business opportunities and providing them with a better understanding of what consumers wanted and needed.  When they returned stateside, the Schultes began researching the concepts they found most intriguing and solicited advice from friends already in business for themselves.  When a friend and Valpak franchisee in Florida mentioned the company was looking to expand, the Schultes knew they had found the business they were looking for. 

“Given my background with Moore, Valpak was the next natural step for me as it blended my past experiences with a service both businesses and consumers could benefit from. It allowed us to control our own destiny in a field we were comfortable with,” said John, 60.  “While it was more of a departure for Susan with her teaching background, she believed it was an opportunity we couldn’t pass up and was willing to dedicate the necessary time to ensure our first entrepreneurial venture was a success.” The couple relocated from Southern Oregon to the Salem area, where they introduced residents of the Willamette Valley to Valpak in August of 2006.  Since their first mailing, the Schultes have grown their client base significantly to include a “who’s who” of national and regional retailers like McDonald’s, The Maids, Sylvan Learning Centers, Quiznos, Budget Blinds and Culbertson’s Cleaning Service and are constantly adding new businesses to their roster.  According to John, he is able to r elate to his clients on a number of levels to guarantee their ad campaigns are as successful as possible.

“We work very closely with our clients, many of which are franchises, and we have heard countless tales of how their franchisors have literally taken their money and run, leaving them to fend for themselves,” said John.  “Valpak is the absolute antithesis of that because there is a built-in support system at our disposal, one that is so comprehensive that we are able to use its techniques when dealing with our own clients. They provide support when you need it the most – a trait that we mirror in our day-today operations with our own clients.” Since entering the Salem market in 2006, the Schultes have increased their mailings from 30,000 homes to nearly 60,000 homes with plans to continue expanding their coverage area over the next several years, continuing to help local businesses grow while growing their own business as well.

“One of the great joys of what we do is helping a small business achieve their full potential,” said John.  “We worked with a local, one-location restaurant to develop an ad campaign and saw their sales increased between 25 and 30 percent over the course of the year they mailed with us.  When the owner stopped advertising for two months just to see what happened, he saw a $9,000 per month drop in sales and vowed never not to use Valpak again. Being able to have such an impact on someone’s business and actually seeing the results is a wonderful experience and reassures us that bringing Valpak to the area was the best decision we’ve ever made.”